Triple: Episode 6

I think Episode 6 was the best episode so far, although I haven’t seen 7 yet so I can’t speak to this week’s episodes. Dramas that have “themed” episodes can go either way, because if a writer takes the theme too far, it can be overbearing in forcing the events to match the theme. I thought The World They Live In often erred too much on that side of excess. On the other hand, I’m liking the way the skating-related themes are being drawn to Triple‘s plot, which draw certain parallels but haven’t (yet) gone too far in making those connections.

SONG OF THE DAY

Biuret – “하루는” (A Day / haru neun). The “haru” in this title is also Haru’s name in the drama, as she explains in this episode. [ Download ]

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EPISODE 6: “Jump”

The theme for today’s episode is “jump,” as Haru explains that it’s important to attempt a jump, but more important to do so safely and beautifully. Don’t think of falling, and reach for the highest.

Without any advertising work to do, Hae-yoon spends a lot of time at Sang-hee’s. Their relationship has settled into a comfortable groove — that is, until Jae-wook drops by and asks if he can crash at the bar. At Sang-hee’s easy consent, Hae-yoon looks at her incredulously and asks, “Are you crazy?”

Meanwhile, Hwal and Hyun-tae hang around at the office doing nothing. When Hwal leaves to pick up Haru from the rink, Hyun-tae voices the concern they’ve all been skirting: “How long do you think we can hold out like this?”

Su-in hands Haru a CD and tells her to familiarize herself with it — it’s music for her big competition. Listening to it in the car ride home, Haru starts to mentally choreograph her program. She’s a little startled when Hwal corrects one of her ideas, surprised he knows skating terms so well, but on the whole is pleased to think, “You studied because of me, right?”

That brings out his gruffness again (he’s not comfortable with the idea of bonding) and he ejects the CD. (Unfazed, she puts it back in.)

Hae-yoon is thrilllllled when Haru calls him oppa, and he repeats it over and over happily. (The reason he’s pleased is different than the reason Poong-ho loved being called oppa; while Poong-ho’s interest is romantic, Hae-yoon’s pleasure derives from the fact that the alternative is being called “ajusshi,” and “oppa” makes him seem younger.) Too bad Hwal ruins his enjoyment by commenting that the pair of them look like father and daughter, to which Hae-yoon retorts that he’s an oppa, not an appa (father).

Hae-yoon asks Haru (casually) what she thinks of Sang-hee letting Jae-wook stay at her place, and is gratified that Haru also thinks it’s weird — it validates that he’s not being out of line for having trouble with it.

Su-in anticipates her date with Hwal with nervous excitement, and the evening goes off uneventfully, if a bit awkwardly. For instance, she tries to tell a funny story but the atmosphere is forced and it doesn’t go off smoothly. It’s a little cute when she asks hopefully, “Are you maybe really having tons of fun but pretending not to?” At least Hwal laughs at that.

She wonders if things were this awkward the first time they met, and is pleased at his answer: “I don’t know, when I first saw you I was so nervous the only thing I could hear was my heart pounding.”

Hae-yoon was already unhappy with Jae-wook staying at Sang-hee’s bar, but was under the impression it was only temporary and is displeased to see he’s still there; he finds Jae-wook’s toothbrush in the bathroom, alongside his own and Sang-hee’s. He shows it to Sang-hee, and is frustrated when her only reaction is to the interesting color. (Hae-yoo’s reaction isn’t just because Jae-wook is staying over but also because Sang-hee sees nothing odd about the arrangement; moreover, she doesn’t understand why he would have problems with it.)

Losing his temper, he demands, “How understanding do I have to be?” He starts to yell, then cuts himself off. He throws the toothbrush aside and walks out.

At skating practice, both girls are having a bad day: Haru keeps falling, while Su-in pesters Hye-jin to smile and show some emotion in her skating. This leads to an air of frustration, which is broken when Hyun-tae suddenly shows up on the ice, stumbling and sliding, here for beginners’ classes.

Haru welcomes him with her usual warmth, but Su-in is annoyed since she knows this is because of her. Typical of Hyun-tae, he isn’t deterred at her cool response and tells her that his persistence is part of his appeal.

Afterward, Hyun-tae takes Haru home, and as they’re getting ready to take off on his motorcycle, Poong-ho rides by on his bicycle and does a double-take. Immediately threatened, he demands to know how “this jerk” is and wonders if this is the guy she had told him she liked. Haru just rolls her eyes at his childishness, and the two drive off together. Alarmed, Poong-ho pedals furiously after them and arrives at the house much later, sweating and out of breath. Muttering his dissatisfaction all the while, Poong-ho jumps the fence and heads inside, where he sees Hyun-tae again and starts to shout accusingly. But at Hae-yoon’s authoritative bearing, Poong-ho shrinks back, mindful of his elders. (HE. IS. SO. CUTE.)

A little calmer now, Poong-ho introduces himself as Haru’s boyfriend (to her irritation), and asks who the guys are. They don’t look like brothers — are they uncles? (Hae-yoon is chagrined to be bumped out of the oppa class and relegated to the older generation once again.)

The guys find Poong-ho and his youthful ardor entertaining, and Hyun-tae has some fun at his expense, introducing himself as Haru’s husband. Poong-ho gapes disbelievingly while Hyun-tae continues with the joke, introducing Hae-yoon as Haru’s ex-husband. Haru’s a little young, but she’s mature for her age, and they all live together as a cool modern family of sorts. Lastly, Hwal is identified as Haru’s brother — her younger brother, who despite his appearances is still a teenager.

Poong-ho is gullible enough to buy the first two, and only gets that they’re pulling his leg with the third explanation. But by the time he leaves, he’s back to being cheerful (now that these potential threats to his suit have been mitigated). He announces his intentions, asking, “Hyungnim! Could I be Haru’s first husband eventually?” Hwal tells him to go to the army first, then they’ll talk, which is a way of pointing out how young they still are.

The anniversary of Haru’s mother’s death is approaching, so her father tells her to go to pay her respects this year with Hwal. (All these years, he’s taken Haru to her mother’s grave, but now that she has Hwal, it’s more appropriate for her to go with him.)

Haru tries to broach the subject of visiting their parents’ graves, but senses Hwal won’t be receptive and stops herself. Instead, Hwal asks about her training, and she tells him that her initial intentions were to focus only on skating, but now that she’s improving and experiencing more, she’s also getting more ambitious. With his trademark bluntness, Hwal replies, “If you want to do those things, just do it, what’s the problem?”

To Haru, it’s not that simple — people don’t automatically get everything they want — but his philosophy has a nice ring of truth to it, and she takes it to heart.

Once more, skating practice is not going well — Su-in is frustrated with her skaters again — when Hyun-tae shows up for his lesson. This time, he steps onto the ice and imitates Su-in’s shrill nagging, pointing out how useless it is to angrily demand someone to smile, but doing it with enough good-natured cheer that the girls laugh at his imitation. He tells the girls that their coach means well, but reminds them to smile, buoying the serious atmosphere.

After practice, Su-in decides to take a different approach to Hye-jin (and improving her surliness) by asking her to come in an hour early the next day to teach the beginners’ class. Naturally, her overbearing stage mother balks at this, but Su-in tells Hye-jin to think it over.

Hwal’s birthday is approaching, and Haru enlists Hae-yoon’s help in planning a party. Hae-yoon tells her that Hwal hasn’t celebrated the day in five years, because their parents died the following day and darkened the memory. Still, Haru insists on a small celebration, and pores through some of the middle school photos depicting the three guys and Sang-hee as teenagers.

While they’re going over some ideas, Hwal enters the room, sending the two co-conspirators into a hurry to cover up their planning materials. HA! at Hae-yoon’s idea of a casual playing-it-cool pose:

Lovelorn Hyun-tae is having trouble sleeping, so he arrives (unnanounced, of course) that night in Su-in’s yard with a sleeping bag. He ignores Su-in’s protests and tells her good night, zipping up the bag to sleep.

Honestly, it’s a good thing Yoon Kye-sang is so cute, because his character is being pretty ridiculous — it’s one thing to feel infatuation with a person (hey, who hasn’t been there?), but quite another to be stalking them daily and literally trespassing on their property.

The next day at practice, Hye-jin is smiling happily for once, after teaching the younger class. Not only was it fun engaging with the youngsters, for some reason it’s also helped loosen her tight shoulder, which had been bothering her. (The point of the exercise was to get Hye-jin out of her grim mood and skating more freely, laughing more, so in that respect this experiment has been a resounding success.)

Haru asks Hye-jin, who’s still much more advanced than she is, whether there’s anything about her skating that gives her trouble. For Haru, the spiral is the easiest, so Hye-jin tells her to give it a try, then pushes her to hold her leg higher, higher, higher, until Haru falls to the ice. Using this as an example, Hye-jin says that even the easy tasks are difficult.

As for the Bond Factory: With work nonexistent, Hwal hits upon a new idea, spawned by seeing a collection of cheap flyers stuck onto his car window. He remembers what their old boss said he did when he started their former firm, Koryeo — he went around and looked at the flyers put out by businesses, then used those as a starting point to offer his own services. The guys are not enthusiastic — this kind of work is scraping the bottom of the barrel — but Hwal pushes on.

Thus Hwal approaches a restaurant owner, offering ideas for improving upon their previous advertisements, and their revised product earns the owner’s approval. It’s a small job, but at least it’s work.

He also takes a meeting with the Bok Man Chicken president, hoping to lure him into a television ad campaign. He’s not optimistic, since they know the guy is stingy and resistant to fancy campaigns, but Hwal takes an assertive approach and shows a competitor’s television ad. It rankles the president, because the ad spot earned his competition good business, but he gripes that the ad isn’t even that good. Hwal commiserates, saying that he understands how frustrating it is to see bad work earn success for a rival. The president takes well to Hwal’s no-nonsense, straightforward approach.

Then, it’s skating competition day. In more adorableness, Poong-ho enlists his friends to help cheer on Haru with a sign that says “Lee Haru ♥ Ji Poong-ho.” (LOL. It would be cute enough if the sign were backward — Poong-ho loves Haru — but the fact that he put it the other way makes it funnier. Oh, youthful confidence.)

Haru competes in the last group of skaters (ostensibly in the most skilled group), and fights her considerable nerves as she steps onto the ice, skating to the program that she (and Hwal) designed. Her jumps are clean, and she’s worked hard on her elements — even her spiral is higher than before — and ends the program to much approval and applause.

Hye-jin is next, and Haru wishes her good luck. They still bicker back and forth, but they’ve reached a certain level of respect, and Hye-jin has seen Haru’s impressive program. While Hye-jin has been skating better, when she steps onto the ice, she falls on two jumps and stumbles on another, and when she finishes her program, she knows how badly she’s screwed up. Furthermore, everyone’s startled — Haru had always been the wild card between the two of them, and if someone were to have problems, one would have expected it to be Haru, not Hye-jin.

Haru wins the gold medal, which she regards with awe, but her mood is subdued because it’s mixed with sorriness at Hye-jin’s unexpected bad performance. Su-in congratulates her on a job well done, and Hye-jin’s mother overhears, bursting out angrily that she hadn’t been coaching Hye-jin properly and that she will be changing coaches immediately.

Haru approaches the car hesitantly to talk to a devastated Hye-jin, but Hye-jin doesn’t say anything and closes the door in tears.

Unexpectedly, the guys are called in by the Bok Man Chicken president, and they all wonder nervously what the occasion is. They fear it’s bad news, particularly when the president starts off by complaining of the rival’s ad, which kept him awake all night. Therefore, he tells them they’d better do a good job and at least be better than the competition, and the guys take a moment to realize that they’ve just scored a television ad. As they walk out, they marvel at this turn — it’s been a long time since they’ve worked on a television ad, which is much more creatively interesting and satisfying work than printing out coupons and flyers.

The president even loads them up with boxes of chicken to take home as a gift — and it’s then that Hyun-tae and Hae-yoon (reacting to the word “gift”) realize something. They exchange looks, hand over their piles of boxes to Hwal, and make a quick getaway, telling Hwal to share the chicken with whomever and that they’ll see him at home.

This leaves Hwal bewildered, and he doesn’t understand their sudden departure until he arrives at home. The lights are all off, as he tries to flick them on, he is led inside to where a large projection screen is set up.

When he sees the screen, it starts playing a slideshow of old photos of Hwal from middle school, and a recording of Haru’s voice kicks in:

Haru’s recording: “See, oppa — it’s really interesting that I could see a side of you I didn’t know. The oppa back then seems like my friend, and also like my younger brother. Teenage Shin Hwal, Jo Hae-yoon, Jang Hyun-tae, Kang Sang-hee — I like it. But why were you born so early? It would have been nice if you were born a little later. Then I could talk with the oppa in these pictures and we could have hung out together. Too bad. Thanks for letting me stay with you. Happy birthday, oppa.”

When the slideshow ends, Haru pops up from her hiding place and wishes him happy birthday: “From now on, I’ll help celebrate the birthday you lost because of me.”

Then the guys emerge from their hiding places with a cake and sing him happy birthday, and this leads to a cake fight (smearing frosting on each others’ faces) and general conviviality.

When Sang-hee shows up to join the party, Hae-yoon ignores her, still upset about Jae-wook. Even when she tells him that Jae-wook found a new place to stay, he remains cool. Understanding that he’s still angry, Sang-hee talks to him tentatively, hoping for a truce or an opening. Instead, Hae-yoon tells her that they don’t suit each other — they may be okay dating, but “it’ll be difficult for us to develop into anything more.”

Sang-hee asks hesitantly, “Did I make a mistake?” He tells her flatly, “You didn’t make a mistake. It was my mistake for thinking you could change.”

Sang-hee keeps up a cheerful front with the other guys but makes an early exit. When Hwal gets a text message from Su-in, he also cuts out early, breaking up the party just as they’re cutting the cake.

After leaving, Sang-hee gets drunk and calls Hae-yoon from a street bench just outside a restaurant, slurring her apologies and asking him to pick her up. Hae-yoon battles indecision for a moment before he heads out to get her, but he’s not quick enough, because Jae-wook gets there first. Sang-hee hadn’t called him, but he says that Hae-yoon won’t be able to make it, and carries Sang-hee home.

Hwal arrives at Su-in’s place, where she greets him with birthday cupcakes. As he blows out the candles, Su-in looks outside to see Hyun-tae arriving in front of her house on his motorcycle. Hyun-tae sees the cozy scene inside, then turns around and leaves glumly. Su-in doesn’t react either, and while Hwal pretends he doesn’t notice, he has heard the sound and knows what’s just happened.

Therefore, when he comes home, he’s frustrated with Hyun-tae. He tells him, “Things are still complicated with me and Choi Su-in, so don’t get involved too.” Plus, he advises Hyun-tae to sleep at home, not in someone’s front yard, indicating he was aware of that as well.

Hwal heads to his room, still frustrated, where he sees a slice of cake left by Haru. She’s also left her skating medal with a note telling him she won first place; she’s a national skater now.

Perhaps this is a reminder, or just the prodding he needs, because Hwal eats the cake, then wakes Haru up to go visit their parents.

As they drive, Hwal thanks her for the party but tells her she doesn’t have to do that again. Haru answers, “I think I understand how you feel. I thought when five years passed, I wouldn’t be sad. But I keep thinking of Mom, every day. June is your least favorite month of the year too, isn’t it?”

When she asks where he went earlier, he replies, “My girlfriend.” At first she thinks he’s joking, but when she realizes he’s telling the truth, Haru grows sulky and refuses to look at him. (Her bubbly nature is too strong for that to last long, however, and she cheers up again in no time.)

The gravesite is a fair distance away, so Hwal pulls over for a nap break. Haru muses about their names, saying that she was named Haru (a day) because it took a whole day for her to be born. What does Hwal mean?, she wonders. (He doesn’t know and tells her to go to sleep.)

As he settles back in his seat and closes his eyes, Haru looks at him, tracing her finger in the air over his hand and face until he feels her presence and tells her to cut it out. He opens his eyes to see Haru looking at him intently, which gives him an odd feeling, so he turns away to face the door instead. His discomfort grows, so finally he gets out of the car for some air.

In the morning, they arrive at the cemetery and make their greetings to their parents, leaving flowers and cleaning off the headstone. Haru sees that their names are printed together on the marker and wonders (wistfully?), “Why am I your sister?”

They head back for home after their visit, and Haru’s narration ties in the episode’s theme to the latest developments. She recalls a book she once saw that said that falling has wings, which always struck her as a curious thing:

Haru’s narration: “Why would you fall when you have wings? But today, I suddenly wanted wings. Wings to let me fly high, strong wings to take me far away…”

The next day before practice, Su-in gives Haru good news: She has been granted a spot, alongside Hye-jin, in the upcoming Eurasian competition. Haru basks in the thrill while Su-in heads off to the office for a moment, until her attention is diverted by Su-in’s ringing phone. Curiously, she peers at the front display, which shows a photo with Su-in and Hwal and the descriptor, “My husband.”

Curious and surprised, Haru picks up the phone, just as her narration wraps up:

Haru’s narration: “…Even if I fall at some point.”

COMMENTS

Part of my satisfaction with this episode is in how well the theme plays in particularly nicely — “jump” in the context of skating is extrapolated to play on falling, as in love (or at least infatuation). That image comes into clarity in the last several scenes, when Haru looks up at the sky out the car window while narrating about falling, wondering why she and Hwal are in a sibling relationship, and then feeling that *koong* feeling of falling hard when she sees Su-in’s phone and realizing what that means.

On that note, Lee Jung-jae is doing such a good job as Hwal. I love Kang Ji-hwan, but I have to admit that I can’t see him doing a better job than Lee Jung-jae, who does that reluctant gruff guy so heartwarmingly well. I suppose Kang Ji-hwan may be able to pull it off — he IS a good actor, and as a good actor perhaps he’d do fine acting against type — but I keep seeing him as too cute to pull off perpetually grumpy. And I love Lee Jung-jae anyway, so I’m happy.

I was thinking of how much I adore the Haru & Poong-ho developing romance, and wondered why it comes off as sweet and endearing when I have so little patience for the Su-in and Hyun-tae storyline, which is developing along similar lines. In both cases, you have the guy falling for the girl right away; he announces his interest and persists despite the girl’s relative disinterest, and generally acts like an adorable pest. But Poong-ho doesn’t bother me at all, and I’m heartily rooting for him and Haru. I think it’s because Haru tolerates Poong-ho and doesn’t seem entirely turned off by his affections — she doesn’t like him in the same way, but she smiles in amusement, for instance, when he brings out his cheering party at her skating competition. Or when she laughs along with Hyun-tae’s invented story about how they’re married.

In contrast, Su-in is clearly not interested and is still in love with her husband. It’s not her fault that she doesn’t like Hyun-tae at this point, because if she did we’d hate her for having feelings for someone else while pursuing a reconciliation with Hwal. But she doesn’t have the same affectionate exasperation for Hyun-tae that Haru does for Poong-ho, so Hyun-tae seems like a creepy stalker who is incapable of respecting a woman’s wishes — or, worse yet, disregards them. They seem like an ill fit, and I think this is a writing problem more than an acting one, even though Lee Hana continues to bore me with her blandness. (She’s capable of more, and had a brief flash of likability in her date with Hwal, when she chattered in nervous giddiness. I want to see more of that cute, personable Su-in, not the dour one whose expressions are stuck in the range of “mild disapproval” and “mild disinterest.”)

July 2, 2009 at 3:12 PM

UNREGISTERED

i love this drama so much! i think it's almost a gift to coffee prince fans...

i think the problem with su-in's character is both the acting AND the writing. i think writing-wise, there wasn't enough context or development for us to comprehend why yoon kye sang's character is so attracted to her.

had a more naturally charismatic and likeable actress played su-in, they might have been able to cover the writing flaw. we might have been able to SEE, for ourselves, why yoon kye sang is so drawn to her. but with lee hana playing su-in, we have to rely on the writing to get it. and the writing doesn't help much in this case, so we have zero chemistry and zero comprehension of this storyline.

i think in some dramas, the writer can partially rely on the actors' charismas to convey some things that she/he might otherwise have to express through the writing. i think screenwriting is a mixture of both, knowing to balance these non-writing factors and understanding actors' limitations, as well as their strengths.

that said, i am not a fan of lee hana in this drama :( i think after this episode i just really wanted her out. i don't like sang hee much, but she'll have to do. but sang hee doesn't throw off the balance the way i think lee hana does. ah well. i adore haru though. i think i was iffy about her in the first two episodes, but she has been so charming ever since. i don't know if triple is a drama that showcases how much ability she may or may not have, but i think the style of the series suits her well. it was lucky for her, i think.

and poong-ho!!! i agree, TOO CUTEEE. i can't believe he's an 85er, he looks soooo young.

July 2, 2009 at 3:18 PM

UNREGISTERED

i'm not even watching this because from what i hear the romance stories are too confusing and i hate to get my hopes up about a couple then be disapointed, so i'm just gonna wait and see in the end. ooh and by the way! JUNG IL WOO'S GONNA BE IN LADY CASTLE! =]

July 2, 2009 at 3:39 PM

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Hyun-tae's character I am so disgusted with. WTH about love at first sight. The woman is MARRIED!! to your best friend. Regardless of the fact they have been seperated (for a good reason I might add) they are still legally married. She came to try and fix her marriage and Hawl is trying to make an effort. For everything that is of decency back the HELL off!! This is so wrong on so many levels. I have felt my displeasure in his character growing with each episode and I am now so livid and disgusted I don't see how the PD's can calm me down. I am so surprised that the netizens in Korea aren't talking about the fact he is a 3rd wheel in a marriage and is essentially tyring to break a marriage apart and stab in his friend in the back. He is selfish and childish!! WTH is wrong with him??

The writer needs to stop. This is just showing no class and lack of morals in society. I thought Korean culture the most important thing was family?? Well the writer and Hyun-tae's characher are crapping all over family and family values. Who gives a damn if the person is married, if you have feelings for them then go right for it?? Is that what they are trying to say??? His character is so DAMN selfish and self-centered. I can see why Su-In is swayed because he is being nice to her and she doesn't have to do any work like she does with her HUSBAND!! that she cheated on i might add..

July 2, 2009 at 3:39 PM

July 2, 2009 at 4:27 PM

UNREGISTERED

I'm really enjoying Triple so far. My prediction is that Hwal and Su-in will reunite; Haru will eventually see that Poong-ho is totally the one for her; and unless there's a new character lurking about that we haven't seen yet, Hyun-tae is going to end up with a broken heart. Or in prison for stalking, trespassing, and general harassment. Boy really needs to dial it down a few notches!

I don't have a problem with the story possibly hinting at a Hwal/Haru connection. It's just that I see Haru as the Eun-chan in this scenario, with Hwal and Su-in as the established yet estranged couple (just like Han-sung and Yoo-joo). I guess the comparisons to Coffee Prince are inevitable, huh?

The funny thing is, as much as I am enjoying the show, it's strictly due to how great the male characters are, because other than Haru, I'm not feeling warm and fuzzy towards the women. Su-in is just plain boring, and Sang-hee grates on my nerves. I can't figure out what Hyun-tae sees in Su-in, but for the life of me I don't get what Hae-yoon sees in Sang-hee either! I get that she's supposed to be this quirky free spirit and all, but when I look at her I just wonder when the last time she had a shower might have been! I think I may have borne a strong resemblance to her the time I dressed up as a witch for Halloween one year.

July 2, 2009 at 4:28 PM

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I enjoyed this ep again, and I like how they are not gonna drag out the relationship between Hwal and Suin's marriage in secret for long and that sooner or later, it wont be hidden in the dark for eternity.

Su In bores me, but I don't hate her completely. She did say she had no interest in Hyun Tae, so she's not in the wrong since it's Hyun Tae doing the pursuing - which is completely irritating me more within each episode. I enjoyed the fact that he came in useful cheering the atmosphere, but it would have been nice if he did that as a friend who happened to come by for support after hearing about the stress from perhaps Haru. But since he's there more for romantic pursuits, it irks me that he's EVERYWHERE.

I'm glad that Hwal told Hyuntae to stop sleeping in other Suin's yard, like a "back off" kind of thing and was still kind enough to ask Hyun Tae to step aside a bit and be honest about his and Suin's relationship (when he probably had a right to be angry knowing that his best friend is married, but is pursuing his wife despite knowing that it was absolutely a wrong time to do so.)

Poong Ho is cute cute cute and I want him to be with Haru so much! I like the idea of Haru/Hwal being siblings, and I can tolerate Haru's brother-fetish, extreme love. But I hope it doesn't cross over to the romantic side, or else I may be dropping this drama.

So far I'm not so happy the way the relationships in this drama are heading.
There are cute moments, but lately watching everyone's relationships is quite tiring. I dont think it's the type of drama where you could watch more than one episode in one sitting. There has to be some break between each one.

I skip the Hyuntae/Suin moments, since it's awkward to watch. Hwal and Suin relationship is slightly boring, since Suin isn't that fun to watch either. Hwal and Haru is fun, but if it get more towards romantic, it may start to be a bit bothersome. Sang-Hee and Hae Yoon are not meant for one another, and I just end up sighing all the time.

The only thing that keeps me most happy is Poong Ho~ <3
Sigh. I'm becoming such a Poong Ho fan girl.

July 2, 2009 at 5:43 PM

"Hyun-tae is going to end up with a broken heart. Or in prison for stalking, trespassing, and general harassment. Boy really needs to dial it down a few notches!"

LOL!
Like Hwal, I seriously wanted to punch Hyun Tae.
As cute as he is with the guys...and even with Haru,
when it comes to him and Su In, he's getting more and more annoying.

JB wrote:"I was thinking of how much I adore the Haru & Poong-ho developing romance, and wondered why it comes off as sweet and endearing when I have so little patience for the Su-in and Hyun-tae storyline...
They seem like an ill fit, and I think this is a writing problem more than an acting one..."

I so agree. The writers have left a giant, gaping hole in the storyline and character development as to why Su In and Hyun Tae should even have the remotest possibility of being together.

Poong Ho is lurve! He's doing exactly what a cute 21 year-old would do...AND HARU'S NOT MARRIED TO HIS BEST FRIEND.
Hyun Tae, on the other hand, is acting like a selfish child. "ME WANT! ME MUST HAVE NO MATTER WHAT." grrr.

"On that note, Lee Jung-jae is doing such a good job as Hwal. I love Kang Ji-hwan, but I have to admit that I can’t see him doing a better job than Lee Jung-jae, who does that reluctant gruff guy so heartwarmingly well. I suppose Kang Ji-hwan may be able to pull it off — he IS a good actor, and as a good actor perhaps he’d do fine acting against type — but I keep seeing him as too cute to pull off perpetually grumpy. And I love Lee Jung-jae anyway, so I’m happy."

I must also agree with you on this. (BUT this, in no way, diminishes my lurve for KJH! ;) )

July 2, 2009 at 5:57 PM

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It's interesting to see how Hwal is starting to see Haru as something other than this little girl invading his life. Each scene seems to bring them that much closer. I love the interactions between Haru and the 3 guys, especially Hae-yoon when she called him oppa. So cute!

Whereas Su-in is just a nuisance to me. Part of the reason Hyun-tae keeps coming back is because she does not TRULY drive him away. Yes, she makes sarcastic remarks when he comes to the rink or home. But c'mon, someone extremely persistent keeps coming by, you say you don't like him. He won't take no for an answer.and is now sleeping in your yard....isn't it time to call the cops? Or at least tell you husband his friend keeps stalking you and can he please back off? And that look on her face when he sees her with Hwal on her birthday.......that wasn't a "so now you see that it's Hwal I love look" but a "oops you saw me with Hwal I probably can't ho it up with you anymore" look.

And Hyun-tae, that's not love, that's an infatuation. Because there are no bonds being built between the two of you....not to mention the total lack of chemistry. This is a case of the wrong actress for this role. Case in point ISWAK which had little story line but great chemistry between the two leads. And while Yoon Kye Sang is trying his damndest, it takes two to create romance.

July 2, 2009 at 6:18 PM

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Simi, I completely agree. I don't understand Hyun-tae's attraction to her (maybe physical) but honestly he knows nothing about her. The chemisty isn't there. I don't fault the writing, I hate to say this but I fault the actress and I love LeeHaNa. She doesn't seem to be living through the character but merely acting it out and that is my problem with the character. I don't believe Soo-In when she says she regrets or wants HT to stop bothering her. Her actions don't convince me. I also don't see any spark between her and HT.

Who knows we might be surprise at how things will develop later on and we might actually like them together but so far I don't see it. We have a couple more episode for the PD to convince us with all the relationships and how it will transpire.

July 2, 2009 at 6:40 PM

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I decided to put this drama on hold after watching ep 5. The story is giving me little creepy feely moments and I'm just not all that interested in any of the characters. Pong Ho is a cute character but not enough to keep me excited to watch every week.
I'm more interested in watching Partner right now. It has some plot holes but LDW is just so charismatic on screen, I can't stop watching him.

July 2, 2009 at 6:49 PM

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I watched the episode before I read the recap this time. I think I will do that from now one as your recap adds more depth if it's read afterwards but kinda spoils the show if it's read before. Anyways, thanks JB.

July 2, 2009 at 6:51 PM

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I love this drama! I always watch the drama then go to your site and read the summaries even though i already watched it. I like to read your summaries anyways, because I like the comments you make and you do a good job at it too!
keep it up! thanks

July 2, 2009 at 8:07 PM

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I hear a lot of people commenting how KJH would've been much better for Hwal's role only because LJJ is old compared to KJH but I think LJJ is doing a good job and he is much more for this role than KJH.

I too don't understand why HT would be attracted to SI and I don't understand why HT is doing what he's doing. I don't understand why the writer continues to keep HT stalkerish. I see a lot of negative comments about HT and SI characters everywhere and this negativity is seriously influencing the rating too but obviously the writer or the PD doesn't get it.

July 2, 2009 at 8:13 PM

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I agree with you JB, Ep 6 was the best episode. There were some weird vibes between Hwal and Haru, which kinda bothered me to some extent, but I still loved the fun between the guys and Haru. As long as the drama doesn't go over-dramatic all of a sudden, it's all good for me, and might even get better!

Poong Ho is just LOVE man. I love how he tries to impress upon Haru, but doesn't go all glum or depressed when he fails to do so. And he wasn't even sad or anything when Haru told him that she liked someone else. He still continued to do his best in trying to impress Haru...soooo cute!!

Regarding Su In, I don't really fault Lee Ha Na for that. I think it's more of a character thing.. we'd probably have the same feeling toward such a character if such was played by other actresses out there. Maybe it's due to LHN's sheepish facial features? I have always thought she looked zoned out or lifeless whenever she's not smiling or whenever she's serious. So with this character, I think she can only do so much.

DB, hjkomo, why bring Kang Ji Hwan into the picture?
My love for both stays the same, but with LJJ's near perfection of his not-so-perfect character Hwal, I seriously CANNOT imagine any other actor pulling his character off. The cast overall, they're great and all, but I have to say LJJ is one league above them all...

July 2, 2009 at 8:34 PM

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What I think the PD is doing is showing us that maybe there are people out there like them. There are people like HT who can't take no for an answer or he's just so in love that he does these things that he doesn't know is very wrong. I love the PD for the mere fact that she won't change the story to suit the audience but bring the story she envisions.

I still have a problem with HT and Soo-in but these characters exist in real life and sadly even in real life we hate them. I go from hating their actions to pitying them. The PD knows how to bring that emotions out of us when we watch and that's is why I love this drama.

When I first heard about Triple I told myself to skip it because the only people I knew in it was the guy that plays HT and and HY from Coffee and I wasn't that keen on HT's acting from before. I gave the drama a chance when I knew which PD was attached to it and boy I'm glad I did. This drama gives me the same feeling like when I watched the drama Coffee but it also brought out more.

Triple brings out so much emotions when I watch it. Sure at first knowing that a relationship between Haru and Hwal was controversial and I might have been a little weird ed out at first but the way the story is told with little touches here and there I started to warm to the idea and now I love them together. The story isn't about morals, incest, appropriateness, it's about living life, having the ability to love someone with no regrets even if it means that the end results in disappointment.

When the first sign of Hwal and Haru begin to creep into the screen I asked myself why I felt a little uncomfortable with the pairing and I remember thinking in my head it was because they are siblings and than it hit me, they aren't sibling. The reason I couldn't accept it at the time was because when watching I regarded all the cute actions to be brotherly love and never once thought it could be a different kind of love but why did I do that and I hate to admit it but it was because of their age.

As I continue to watch the drama I decided to watch it with the fact that they aren't siblings in my mind and I was able to enjoy them as a couple. I no longer see that as a factor and I have enjoyed all their scenes , which are very well acted and convey so many emotions.

I try to keep an open mind to everything and I'm glad I did because I haven't liked a drama this much in so long.

July 2, 2009 at 9:01 PM

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Hyun-Tae's character becomes clearer and clearer for me as the episodes go by. Both Su-in's mother and Hwal have said that Su-in always thought that she could do exactly what she wanted without regard to others. Now Hyun-tae appears to be doing that to her. But as time goes by he seems to intuit what she really needs. She is always trying so hard when she is with Hwal. And we don't really have all the back story to their relationship. I was thinking about the Coffee Princes back story regarding his father and mother and how it came out in drips...no bun intended. Hwal and Su-in's relationship was flawed in some way anyway. They are both way too serious and not really able to bring out the best in each other.

July 2, 2009 at 9:05 PM

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I second every words you say about Lee Jung Jae and Kang Ji Hwan's comparison.
I can't really imagine KJH as Hwal - he's too cute to be grumpy, and he looks too young compared with Lee Seon Gyun and Yoon Kye Sang ( imo ), so it's rather unbelievable if they're at the same age.. ( i know KJH is older than YKS by a year )..
Lee Jung Jae fits so well as Hwal.

Poong Ho, how can you hate him anyway??? hahaha, he's so adorable, not to mention good looking..

Ep.7 is good - I like it, and I can't wait tonight to get back home and watch ep.8! More Poong Ho/Haru moments!!

I like it, like it so much. I like it more than Boys before Flowers, and another proof I like ajusshis more than pretty boys.. :P

July 2, 2009 at 9:35 PM

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I think there are some other reasons most of us like the Poong Ho /Haru angle but hate the Su In/ Hyun-Tae one. For one, Hyun-Tae clearly knows about Su In and Hwal, yet still persists in his stalking ways. Hwal is one of his best friends, making his actions seem self centered and disrespectful. Also, he's a grown man, he shouldn't be doing some of those things; sleeping in her yard is crossing the line. Creepy much? The biggest problem is that we never really see or understand why he feels so strongly about her. It's frustrating to watch YKS because I like him and so wanted to like his character.

July 2, 2009 at 11:31 PM

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i watched up til ep 7 and i think it's a great series.i started watching in the first place because of your great reviews. =) but i have to admit, i really hate soo in. i hope she dies or something. she's so annoying. she doesn't deserve to be with hwal.

have been a huge fan of your site since.. well, a looooooooooong time ago. and i love your taste in music, films and series. all ur number 1 rated series are awesome. my favorite has got to be soulmate. i love how they film it with the flashbacks. lovely. anyways, keep up the good work.

July 2, 2009 at 11:36 PM

July 3, 2009 at 12:31 AM

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Why are so everyone in a bad reaction but all of us has a freedom to react just to express our sympathy to our favorite actors & actresses. I think for me,it's just
only the spices of the story but i'm so very hopeful. When you think about the
story behind in a rivalry of a best of friends. And when the realization sit in to you
that you'd never expected what will happen in every relationship that you will fight for. We have individual differences on how to view our perspective lives or by just to supressed our feeling. I'm so deeply disturb with haru that she is so in love
with Hwal in contrast to hyuntae never mind because he is guy and it's by nature
with the man who court a woman. But, it's up to a woman on how to handle
your feelings towards a man. To hyuntae it's not so awkward to stalk a girl (that kind!!!! What a handsome). Every woman will be flater if you have an admirer that
so very consistent and persistent in showing his feelings. I think that's how I
understand in every character that the writer meant( haha!) just my interpretation.

Contrary of the cast ,I think hye yoon and sang hee seems not so complicated
relationship .While the others,bothered in their every aspect they felt for a person.
But this drama is so interesting for me ,how it ends and what lessons we learn
and also how they value their friendship.What i like most of triple is not so heavy
drama.It made me so much fun and themesong, everyone just wore only t-shirt.
Thanks for the recap JB, why take you so long to recap and i've always dropping
your web. and i thought you will stop summarizing the episode 6 and i'm happy.

July 3, 2009 at 12:39 AM

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I'm so annoyed at Hyun Tae's character. He is a total stalker, and his interest in Su In just doesn't make any sense. Why would a guy try to take his friend's wife away whom he hardly knows? I just don't buy it. PDs, please change the story line!

July 3, 2009 at 2:00 AM

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I can see Hwan and Su In's relationship being more fun and light-hearted in the past (picture on Su In's phone) but now awkward because of her infidelity. If the PD chooses to fix their relationship, we may see less and less of this dull, sad Su-In character....one can hope.

July 3, 2009 at 2:04 AM

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just want to add..., i know this may sound creepy, but haru and hwal are cute together.... ^-^
I dont mind the age gap (lol!!) and,
I am hoping the two will be together when haru is older enough... but...mmm,
I doubt it, they will, most probably, end up (99.9%) as brother and sister....
Su-in bores me a little bit, urg!
Hyun-tae....LOL!!! oh well.... i dont know where he is heading off....best of luck! ^-^

July 3, 2009 at 2:22 AM

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another add-on!

@langdon813's comment regarding Sang-hee:

LOL! I agree! She looks and acts like an unstable person rather than a spirited one! and her HAIR bugs me to death! I can hardly see her face or expression.... all i see is one huge mass of stringy brown hair! I think she is better off with Hyun-tae....both are of the same wavelength....out of reality...

July 3, 2009 at 5:34 AM

July 3, 2009 at 6:16 AM

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will haru and hwal end up together?
cuz i kinda dont like the idea of them being romantically linked together.
it creeps me out eventhough they're not related by blood but still they were step siblings. well, now they are ex-step siblings. but still its kinda weird and eh, incest-ish although its not? lol. does that even make any sense?

Poongho is adorable!
I hope haru will end up with poongho in the end. haha

July 3, 2009 at 7:52 AM

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I'm Haru/Hwal, I don't know what you guys think about beeing brothers, but I think that is not something that parents go and say: Haru this is you brother Hawl.
It's something that is built since young age. So to me they aren't brothers at all.
Problably someone here saw "I am Sam", everybody was like screaming for the main girl stay with T.O.P, but in the end she stayed with the teacher what I think was good.
I agree Poong is extremely cute, but not to stay with the main girl.

July 3, 2009 at 8:04 AM

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did anyone else laugh when hae-yoon said to poong-ho, "eenumah sheki, uttda detgo, ee sheki..."? (this punk, this little punk). loved the delivery of that line from lee seong-kyun. genius comedian right there. i looooved that whole scene where they're totally pulling one over on poong-ho!

July 3, 2009 at 8:24 AM

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Fangirl moment!!

Lee Seon-kyun is the man, is he not? The Voice indeed...I love every sound he makes. I love his his laugh; hell, even when he just grunts my ears want to melt from happiness. His new wife is VERY lucky!

July 3, 2009 at 12:51 PM

July 3, 2009 at 3:47 PM

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after watching episode 7, i know for sure this is a drama worth watching.
its slowly revealing more about each character, and even though some of the characters feel unrealistic - its just that they are all too real, in a sense.

[ &while the episodes up till now have been great, episode 7 REALLY had those CP type moments. haha
love it, so glad to see this PD's drama unfold!]

i know alot of people are complaining, because there is no PERFECTION of any of the characters. they each have character flaws that are very much atypical of a korean drama: i.e. no one is poor, filthy rich or dying. they have shades of gray the same as us, whereas most dramas are pretty much black & white...
the stalker with good intentions, the girl with a crush on her half-brother, the estranged marriage between her brother & his wife who also happens to be the girl's coach, the gruff husband/ brother, the silly, "open" girl & the very sarcastic, serious man...

i really enjoy the cute moments, the laughs, the natural acting & the slow unfolding of the relationships in a way that is NEW.

i wish more people appreciated this drama, and were able to accept its quirky and cute side...

July 3, 2009 at 5:59 PM

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@endroine...viikii has english subs for this drama. WithS2 also does subs but they're at episode 4 right now.

@piano4112000...."I love the PD for the mere fact that she won’t change the story to suit the audience but bring the story she envisions."......that statement right there is why I love Triple! While some of the characters bug me, it does not take away my enjoyment of the drama.

The Hwal/Haru possible romance storyline never bothered me because from the start Hwal never saw her as a sister and to Haru he was never oppa my "brother".
More like the guy who lived in the same house as me but was never home..

July 3, 2009 at 6:14 PM

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My friend and I also noticed the weird difference between how Poongho -> Haru and Hyuntae -> Sooin is approached the same way, yet give off different feels. Poongho is cute while we brand Hyuntae as creepy and stalker - I mean, especially at the part where he records down the times at which she does things. If that's not stalker, I don't know what is. And like JB, I agree that the problem lies in how Haru and Sooin treat him. I don't think Haru ever has had to threaten getting a restraint order on Poongho.

More to that, though, is the fact that the circumstances are different. While Poongho is fighting Haru and her infatuation with Hwal [even though he is unaware that it is Hwal], Hyuntae is actively fighting against Sooin and her attempt to reconcile with her husband. It could have been forgiveable had he not known the circumstance, but especially since he knows that he is fighting a husband, and moreso his good friend... it's like, why are you doing this? There's a saying in Chinese that goes something like, you don't mess with your friend's wife [of course said more eloquently]. It's just wrong.

So we have a guy running against marriage [Hyuntae], and a guy who's just enraptured in a cute, young romance [Poongho]. Clearly, you find your winner.

Meanwhile, I found the "reconciliation attempt no. 1" thing between Hwal and Sooin... weird. I mean, I understand that they're still trying to figure things out, but they act as if nothing between them has happened. It's just... I don't know. Maybe I don't want Hwal to end up back with Sooin just because of my distaste and dislike for the character. Sooin is so boring and very unlikeable, both for her actions and her expressions - can she look any more gloomy? But the fact that those two now get along so well really bothers me, but I can't put into words why or how. I'm just waiting for, "BAM!" and there Sooin screws everything up again. And Hwal goes for someone better.

My friend really hates Sanghee for some reason. I... don't really have any thoughts on her except that she is quirky and weird and really really free-spirited. She hasn't gotten to my nerves yet. But she's so free-spirited that ever having a serious relationship is like a huge contradiction to her nature. It's sad - so if she wants to stay with Haeyoon, does that mean she'll have to give herself [her nature] up? Not sure.

By the way, I have no problem with the Hwal/Haru issue. They could be cute, really. And age is only a number [hahaha]. I don't care, because Haru is cute and she can end up with anybody and it'd be cute. Except Hyuntae, because I do not understand what he sees in Sooin [and now, especially, his motives for continuing to stalk her] and in that sense his character makes zero sense to me. Maybe Hyuntae and Sanghee can get together because both of them make little sense to me sometimes.

July 3, 2009 at 6:19 PM

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i dont think hwal and haru relationship...creep me out at all...

i think PD try to play this morality concept in ppl's head just like in coffee prince...it's really similar in a way..

in CF the main lead act as a boy and fall in love with a guy (gay)
in triple the main lead is step sister fall in love with her brother ..(incest)
that's why it didnt creep me out at all...because they're not blood related whatsoever..they're not even grown up together..same as CF gay issue

haru and hwal relationship... i find it quite sweet actually...
you guy who find this relationship creep u out.. just look it in a different light...some of you will see what i see ... that's they look cute together as a couple.
and im sorry guy....pongho is too plain to watch... he has no depth what so ever.. and omg the way he dress... i cant stand a guy who dont know how to dress regardless of age..

July 3, 2009 at 6:55 PM

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I think that it's a question of propriety. I think that is the reason why a lot of people are weirded out the relationship between Hwal & Haru.
In some cultures, they will find this unacceptable. Yes, they are not related by blood at all. But still, they are living under one roof and some people people will find it improper. I mean think about it, 2 people who are aren't related with each other whatsoever living under one roof and developing romantical feelings for each other. That is indeed improper and it is against some cultural beliefs.

July 3, 2009 at 7:03 PM

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Besides, in my opinion, they are still step siblings no matter what it is. Their parents married each other and they are still married despite their deaths. Hence, they are still step siblings in my eyes.

Just pointing out my thoughts about this so I hope that people wont get too defensive about it.